Archive By Author - Jim Holt
Experts describe wounding of lifeless little girl
SAN FERNANDO - A veteran emergency room physician said Friday he had never seen a patient injured as badly as tiny 5-year-old Desarie Elizabeth Saravia when she arrived lifeless at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital one afternoon in 2004.
Tragic details unfold through pictures
SAN FERNANDO - A crayon drawing done by a badly beaten boy three days after his 5-year-old sister was savagely beaten to death in a Castaic park bathroom gave jurors a glimpse into the children's shared suffering Thursday as a murder trial continued. On Nov. 15, 2004, Brian Saravia, then 6, remained silent when a doctor specializing in cases of child abuse asked him a few questions at the University of California Los Angeles ...
Meadows works out with the best of ’em
Having exercised with students almost every other day for a month, teachers at Meadows Elementary School will have little problem jumping for joy today when they learn their school is a finalist in a statewide challenge to keep kids fit.
Reliving Desarie’s final moments
SAN FERNANDO - Two Castaic women described in court Wednesday what happened the day a lifeless, naked young girl ended up on their quiet suburban street.
High cost of salt wars
The victor of a water war over chloride levels in the Santa Clara River, pitting upstream suburbanites against downstream farmers, could be determined with the flourish of a pen on two emerging fronts this summer, The Signal has learned following a month-long investigation.
Downstreamers’ plight
VENTURA COUNTY - As he makes his way through a furrow that cuts one strawberry mound from the next, his steps are slow and sure, one dusty boot in front of the other.
SCV pays to pass the salt
Snow melting atop mountains in Plumas County, some 480 miles from the Santa Clarita Valley, is as clean as state legislators demand in their Porter-Cologne Act of 1969, and it's as clean as the Feds demand in their Clean Water Act of 1972.
Of woolly mammoths and farming
As the glaciers melted about 10,000 years ago, torrents of freshly melted ice and snow were sent rushing down the Santa Clarita Valley.
Man charged with assault on woman
A woman is conscious but suffering serious head injuries today after a man allegedly hit her in the face, causing her to fall and strike her head on the pavement.
Lines drawn in salty river
You and three friends sit down for lunch at a Santa Clarita Valley restaurant, and each of you orders the soup of the day.
Jets, comets, mystery
It's been about one month since the heavens over Santa Clarita opened up with a roar and revealed - something. It's still not absolutely clear what caused such a commotion at about 8:30 p.m. May 4. Initial reports referred to a "jet doing doughnuts," according to a complaint filed with Edwards Air Force Base, and to "two jets" according to several e-mails to The Signal. After a month of probing, the skies over Santa Clarita ...
Medic: ‘I did all I could’ for fallen Pfc. Suter
A U.S. Navy medic assigned to the same U.S. Marine Corps division as the late Pfc. Jake William Suter says he did all he could to help the local hero the day he died.
NEW PHOTOS: Loved and lost: Community supports fallen Marine
While parents of a young soldier killed in Afghanistan wait to learn how he died, a community has provided them one irrefutable reminder - their son was loved.
CHP reports rise in arrests
California Highway Patrol officers arrested twice as many people in Santa Clarita for drunk driving this Memorial Day weekend compared to those arrested during last year's long weekend. In Santa Clarita, the CHP logged 28 alcohol-related arrests this past weekend as opposed to 17 the same time last year. "I think the best thing about these numbers is that it's bad there were more drunks on the road, however, we're getting them off the road," ...
UPDATED: Vigil set for fallen Marine
The outpouring of love for fallen United States Marine Corps Pfc. Jake William Suter is expected to spill out on to the Stevenson Ranch street he lived on tonight during a candlelight vigil in his honor.
Articles By Author - Jim Holt
Canyon Country man sentenced to 14 years in extortion case
A Canyon Country man who shot up the American Beauty condo complex with a machine gun eight years ago pleaded guilty to five criminal counts in a more recent series of offenses, including two counts of felony battery on a peace officer and three counts of extortion, a deputy district attorney said Wednesday.
Trial delayed for pair charged in shotgun holdup
Trial was put off until March today for a couple who allegedly held up a Valencia home-improvement store with a shotgun last September, a court clerk said.
1 injured in Bouquet Canyon head-on collision
One person was rushed to the hospital with undisclosed injuries this morning following a head-on collision in Saugus, according to emergency response officials.
Turkish man charged in Valencia crash is working a deal
A 20-year-old Turkish man charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter for a car crash last summer that killed a young Turkish woman was represented in court today by a lawyer trying to work out a deal for him.
UPDATE: Valencia woman confronts burglars
Two burglars, one brandishing a crowbar, startled a Valencia resident today when they tried to break into her home in an attempted "hot prowl" burglary, a local sheriff's spokesman said.
Newhall man arrested after woman attacked in her garage
A 25-year-old Newhall construction worker is in custody Tuesday facing assault charges after he allegedly attacked a woman in her garage in Canyon Country last week, a local sheriff's spokesman said.
Preliminary hearing ordered in Saugus murder case
A preliminary hearing has been ordered for a 41-year-old man charged with murder in the death of his Saugus girlfriend 18 months ago, a court clerk said Tuesday.
Plea deal pending in summertime fatal crash
A 20-year-old Turkish man charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter for a car crash last summer that killed a young Turkish woman was represented in court today by a lawyer trying to work out a deal for him.
Valencia resident confronts burglars
Two burglars, one brandishing a crowbar, startled a Valencia resident today when they tried to break into her home in an attempted "hot prowl" burglary, a local sheriff's spokesman said.
Judge: Water purchase complaint remains valid
A state administrative law judge has refused to throw out an environmental group's complaint over a Santa Clarita Valley water district deal.
UPDATE: Keene sentenced to 10 years in drunken-driving death of neighbor
Dennis Dean Keene, the Agua Dulce man convicted in October of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated in the death of his neighbor, Lori Lindlief, was sentenced Monday to 10 years in state prison.
UPDATE: Preliminary report says chopper pitched forward
A helicopter that crashed during a reality TV production this month suddenly pitched down and hit the ground about a minute after taking off in early morning darkness, a preliminary report said Monday.
Race to support students
Little feet made big strides Sunday as scores of kids took part in the WiSH Education Foundation Run For Gold races in Newhall.
Police searching for 3 muggers
A man was mugged at gunpoint for his iPod and cash in Canyon Country Sunday afternoon, a local sheriff's spokesman said.
Man charged with reckless driving
A driver clocked speeding close to 100 mph through city streets, past Central Park and Saugus High School and through one red light, has been charged with reckless driving, according to a report filed by a local sheriff's deputy.
